THE ICE PICK

The Merriam-Webster Concise Handbook for Writers. Springfield, Mass. : Merriam-Webster, 1991. ISBN 0-87779-602-5.

Adapted from Webster’s Standard American Style Manual, this handbook covers all the usual basics of grammar and sentence structure, including punctuation, capitalization, the use of italics, quotations and quotation marks, plurals, possessives, compound words, abbreviations, and the correct way to type numbers in your text. It also includes sections on how to handle footnotes and bibliographies, as well as copyediting and proofreading, and it has an excellent index.

One of the things I particularly liked is the "editor’s style sheet" in the section on copyediting. If you sometimes use the American "gray" and other times the British English "grey," or can’t remember if you "spelled" or "spelt" a character’s name "Bret" or "Brett," or referred to his "data base," "data-base," or "database," you can use this style sheet to help you achieve consistency in your manuscript.

"Designed to be a practical guide to the conventions of the English language in its written form" and intended "for use in the home, school, and office," the handbook is based on "both the consensus and variety that are apparent in standard American writing." As such, many of the rules are qualified with "usually," "some," "often," "sometimes," "may," "many," and "frequently."

This may not be sufficient for you if you are trying, for example, to portray an educated character who knows (or should know) the difference between "shall" and "will," or when to use the subjunctive case.

But if all you need is a practical grammar book that will give you guidance on the practices of contemporary, standard American English in clear, easily understood language with lots of examples, this handbook is one of the best I’ve seen.

{Published in SF & Fantasy Workshop Newsletter, Oct. 2000.}